Reflections from the Global Philanthropy Forum

Photo by U.S. Department of State

Last week I attended the Global Philanthropy Forum, which was held this year a couple blocks away from our office. Bucking some of the concerns about sluggish conference registration numbers in light of the economic downturn, more than 400 donors and social investors gathered to connect, get inspired and learn a new trick or two.

• Paul Brest,  President of The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation gave a talk on strategic philanthropy using Christopher Columbus and the Spanish monarchs at the time as a case study of a philanthropist-grantee relationship. Paul’s talk was at 7 p.m. on a weeknight – not an envious speaking slot for anyone. However, in less than 30 minutes, Paul was able to put a new spin on strategic philanthropy that kept the attention of the audience (even having us laughing at times) and provided insight on how Hewlett thinks about its philanthropy. Paul says strategic philanthropy should allow for risk taking (dangerous voyage across the seas), have clear goals (heading to the East Indies), be rooted in sound strategy based on sound theory (the world is actually round) and allow for feedback and modification (unless the Caribbean is not a bad place to be after all).

• Secretary Clinton delivered a powerful and uplifting speech to the group, which stood to its feet in applause before she was introduced, after she was introduced and after she finished speaking. She mentioned that public-private partnerships can spark innovation, such as vendors in Kenya using cell phones to track products and deals or children in the developing world having access to the Internet or women cooking on solar-powered ranges. She also discussed how small donations can add up to big differences and was grateful that philanthropy was spearheading new thinking on this subject, such as micro loans. The highlight of her remarks for me was when she mentioned that the State Department wants to be a partner – a "convener", a "catalyst" for new projects, new solutions and increased training and technical assistance, and a "collaborator" that leverages support and maximizes results. To that end, she announced the State Department will usher in a new generation of public-private partnerships to enhance collaboration and increase engagement. The newly formed Global Partnerships Initiative will serve as the organizing body for increased partnerships at State, while improving the system to develop and facilitate such partnerships. 

• Sonal Shah, the newly appointed head of the White House Office on Social Innovation and Civic Participation and Michele Jolin, senior advisor, spoke on separate panels. The hopes and dreams of the entire nonprofit and pro-social sector seem to be resting in this office – and have been since the concept was first mentioned before the elections in November. Echoing Secretary Clinton’s comments, Sonal and Jolin both spoke of the Obama Administration’s desire to have an open door policy and proactive efforts to reach out to foundations and the social sector. In a panel with Jolin, moderator Randy Newcomb (Humanity United) jokingly asked Jolin where the open door was located and what should we tell the secret servant agents at the door when we get there. Sonal discussed the fact the office will host a $50 million social innovation fund, coordinate feedback and dialog with the public and social sector and promote national service – nice job so far with helping to get the Kennedy National Service Act signed into law! Michele Jolin remarked that the social innovation fund must help to leverage the power of government and philanthropy and not displace current funding streams, and that the government’s role in social entrepreneurship should be limited, flexible and reward innovation.

• Case Foundation CEO Jean Case, Aspen Institute CEO Walter Isaacson, Intel VP Shelly Esque and The Economist’s American Business Editor Matthew Bishop traded stories and tips on a panel discussing the powerful (public-private) partnerships behind big ideas. Much of the panel revolved around discussion of my favorite public-private partnership, the U.S.-Palestinian Partnership, which was created by the President and Secretary of State in 2007 to spark American business investment in economic and education programs in the West Bank in support of a two-state solution. That partnership has effectively brought Google, Microsoft, Intel, Cisco and many others to the West Bank and was touted as a successful model.  Intel alone has committed to train more than 10,000 teachers in the West Bank and provide 900 Classmate PCs. Walter Isaacson posed a great question wondering if groups spend too much time trying to coordinate efforts and placate interests – perhaps, he said, at times the balance should be more focused on actually getting work done.
  
  Jean Case shared her thoughts that philanthropic capital is patient capital and should be treated that way…. don’t get caught up in developing overly detailed, intricate long-term evaluations. Rather, we should agree on the principles for success, set benchmarks and make room for modifications along the way. Lastly, Matt Bishop became forever endeared to me when he referred to the West Wing episode when fictional press secretary C.J. Craig is given the opportunity run a mega foundation. Her idea is to build roads in Africa – a bad idea according to Matt. I just love that he quoted one of the all time best shows and characters on American television and a great prime time moment about the serious decisions that are made in philanthropy on a daily basis. 

Tags: #GPF philanthropy UPP